Quick Tip: How to Create Two Bright Ice Cream Lollies in Illustrator

Summer may be a long way off in the northern hemisphere, but below the Equator, it's hot hot hot! In this quick tip tutorial we will make a glossy ice cream. Using Gradients, the Blend Tool (W) and Warp Effect you will create a nice and tasty ice creams.

Step 1. Creating an Ice Cream Shape

First open a New web document 500 x 500px. Take the Rounded Rectangle and draw a 110 x 200 px rectangle with corner radius 15 px. The fill color isn't important at this stage.

Create a circle with the Ellipse Tool (L) with the dimensions of 110 x 110px. Place it as shown in the picture and align on the center with rounded rectangle. Go to Window menu, select an Align panel. Now select the two shapes and choose Horizontal Align.

Select the two shapes, go to the Pathfinder panel and choose the Unite command in Shape Mode. Now we will have the main shape of an ice cream.

Step 2. Adding Highlights on Ice Cream Shape

Make a Copy of the main shape. Make another Copy and drag it down and to the right. Recolor one of the shapes. Select the two shapes and choose in Pathfinder panel > Minus Front. Select the shape, go to the Object menu > Transform > Scale. Scale it 95%.

Make a Copy of the highlight shape. Go to the Object menu > Transform > Reflect. Reflect it Vertically. Draw a line and move it as shown in the picture. Choose a Divide in a Pathfinder panel and then delete the top shape.

Now make a Copy of the main shape and a Copy of first highlight. Use these to put highlights on the ice cream shape as shown in the picture.

Step 3. Dividing the Ice Cream

Now we have to divide the ice cream. Using the Arc Tool, create a 120 x 120 px curve, rotate it on 45 degrees. Make two copies, so you have three arcs. Now put them on the first ice cream shape as shown in the picture. Select all shapes and choose Horizontal Align in the Align panel. Select the arc curves and Group them (Ctrl + G). Make a Copy of this group (Ctrl + C) and Paste in Front (Ctrl + F).

Select the main shape and one group of arcs. Go to Pathfinder panel and select Divide. Then select a highlight and the second group of arcs and do the same, Divide from Pathfinder panel. In the picture I have colored in different colors all shapes that you get. It is not necessary to repeat that, I did it only for comparing the results.

Now we will Divide a second ice cream shape. Select Pencil Tool (N) and draw a wavy line. Make a Copy of the line and put it as shown in the picture. It is not necessary to draw the same line as in the picture, just draw a simple wave line.

Select the main shape and lines. Go to Pathfinder panel and select a Divide. In the picture I have colored all shapes different colors.

Step 4. Coloring the Ice Cream

Below are the colors I've used in the gradients for the different sections of the ice cream.

Now to alter the color in the highlights of the ice cream, using the gradients below.

Second ice cream is very easy to color. For all sections, I have used the same radial gradient. Difference between gradients on the parts is the location of gradient. Just play with the locations to achieve different results, with help from the Gradient Tool (G).

Recolor the highlights too.

Step 5. Creating and Coloring the Ice Cream Handle

Create a Rounded Rectangle with the dimensions of 25 x 122px with a radius of 10px. Color it R=253, G=195, B=136.

Put the second rectangle on the first as shown in the picture. Select the Blend Tool (W) and choose Smooth Color. Click on the top rectangle than on the bottom rectangle. This will create a Blend for the ice cream handle. Move the handle into place when done.

Conclusion

We are done! Add a background, play with colors and positions of ice creams! I've created my background by following a similar process as the second ice cream. Try it yourself and see what combinations you can create.

My name is Olga. I'm from small country - Estonia. Working in prepress about 8 years, last 2 years I try to study a vector graphic. So I know almost all about prepress technologies and a few in vector graphics. But I am very pleased to share with you the knowledge and techniques that I already learned.